A record day for S&P 500 — barely

A stock market squeaker, it was. The S&P 500 — after piercing its record high and then yo-yoing above and below that during the day — eked out another record close, by just two-hundredths of a point. Bank and tech stocks (Apple will start selling its iPhones in China Friday) had some of the biggest gains. Stocks had been slipping this year, after 2013’s surge. But on Wednesday, positive economic data (the Beige Book survey showed healthy growth in most Fed districts, and the World Bank raised its forecasts) plus strong earnings sent the big indexes higher. The S&P 500 is now flat so far this year. The immediate challenge is earnings reports.